Creigiau Cwm-ceriw a Ffos-las (Morfa Bychan)
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Climate exposure
This is about exposure to a nationwide pressure this habitat type carries — not a verdict on this site's own management.
Coastal habitats are exposed to sea-level rise and storm erosion. Where hard sea defences sit behind them, there's nowhere landward to retreat to — a squeeze that keeps compressing the habitat no matter how well it's managed.
Geology & landscape
Geological Period: Quaternary
Landscape processes: Coastal, Glacial, Periglacial
Description
Description This is a classic site of critical importance to the interpretation of Late Pleistocene events and processes in West Wales. The deposits in a series of well exposed cliff sections have generated considerable debate concerning their sedimentary origin and dating. According to one authority, they have been interpreted as a series of head (solifluction) deposits which accumulated during periglacial conditions throughout the Devensian, implying that the area was not glaciated by the last (Late Devensian) ice sheet. Alternatively, other workers have suggested that part of the sedimentary succession is till, deposited directly by Late Devensian ice, but subsequently reworked by solifluction. The interpretation of the sequence is therefore crucial to the elaboration of Late Pleistocene events and the establishment of ice limits in West Wales. The site is also widely regarded as one of the best examples of head deposits in Wales.